Francis Bacon, 1st and Only Viscount of St . Alban, KC (22 January 1561 – 9 April 1626) was an English philosopher, statesman, scientist, lawyer, jurist and author . He served both as Attorney General and Lord Chancellor of England . Although his political career ended in disgrace, he remained extremely influential through his works, especially as philosophical advocate and practitioner of the scientific revolution . His dedication brought him into a rare historical group of scientists who were killed by their own experiments . His works established and popularized an inductive methodology for scientific inquiry, often called the Baconian method or simply, the scientific method . His demand for a planned procedure of investigating all things natural marked a new turn in the rhetorical and theoretical framework for science, much of which still surrounds conceptions of proper methodology today . On 27 June 1576 he and Anthony entered de societate magistrorum at Gray's Inn . A few months later, Francis went abroad with Sir Amias Paulet, the English ambassador at Paris, while Anthony continued his studies at home . The state of government and society in France under Henry III afforded him valuable political instruction . For the next three years he visited Blois, Poitiers, Tours, Italy, and Spain . During his travels, Bacon studied language, statecraft, and civil law while performing routine diplomatic tasks . On at least one occasion he delivered diplomatic letters to England for Walsingham, Burghley, and Leicester, as well as for the queen . The sudden death of his father in February 1579 prompted Bacon to return to England . Sir Nicholas had laid up a considerable sum of money to purchase an estate for his youngest son, but he died before doing so, and Francis was left with only a fifth of that money . Having borrowed money, Bacon got into debt. To support himself, he took up his residence in law at Gray's Inn in 1579. .